The present invention relates in general to both natural and artificial materials useful in the production of manufactured goods, and more specifically, to animal skins having artificial quill marks simulating natural quilled ostrich skin and the like, as well as a method of making same.
Natural animal skins such as ostrich, pig, deer and the like have been used for many years in the manufacture of various personal items such as wallets, pocketbooks, shoes, boots, key cases and the like. Natural animal skins have enjoyed great popularity due to their aesthetic appeal and perception of high quality, thereby commanding a high price for the finished goods.
Ostrich skin in particular has enjoyed a great deal of popularity due to its unique appearance resulting from the presence of quill marks which provide the finished goods with a distinctive appearance. To this end, only approximately 50 percent of natural ostrich skin contain quill marks. Although the non-quilled portion of the ostrich skin is also desirable in the manufacture of the aforementioned finished goods, these products do not command the same premium selling price. It is therefore desirable to create artificial quill marks in the non-quilled portion of an ostrich skin, or other suitable animal skin such as pig, so as to provide for the more desirable quilled appearance.
To this end, there is known the artificial quilling of animal skins by creating random shallow depressions using a die and counter arrangement to form protrusions which simulate ostrich quill marks. In constructing manufactured goods from these materials, the skin is stretched taut which has the tendency to flatten the quill-like protrusions. As a result, the aesthetic value of the resulting product is greatly diminished.
There has been known one unsuccessful attempt to overcome this problem by applying a continuous uniform backing layer of rigid thermosetting material over the surface of the animal skin containing the depressions. The resulting quilled material was, however, found unacceptable for use in manufacturing finished goods therefrom. Specifically, the backing layer inhibited the ability of the animal skin to be stretched during the manufacture of articles therefrom. In addition, during the bending or shaping of the skin to conform to the article's shape, the backing layer would crack and flake from the skin. Further, the depressions created during the die stamping process are relatively shallow. It is therefore desirable to provide a means for accentuating these depressions during the manufacture of articles to create more realistic looking quill marks. The use of a continuous uniform backing layer was found incapable of achieving this result.
Accordingly, it can be appreciated that there is still an unsolved need for a material such as natural and artificial animal skin having artificial quill marks formed therein and method of making same which overcomes the above noted disadvantages and drawbacks of the previously known material and process therefore.